Goku. Kenshin. Kenshiro. Haruhi. Saitama. Ainz. Tatsuya. Jin-Woo. Shigeo. These names are synonymous with power and strength. As fans of the mediums of anime and manga, exposure to an overpowered protagonist quite simply comes with the territory; however, with the current trend of characters who are not merely overpowered, but can often be described by the gaming slang term, "broken".

With such a long history of absolutely broken characters, it does bring up some vital questions regarding the future of the trope: is the overpowered protagonist trope reaching a critical mass? What would that even look like? Is it even possible to overdo this specific trope?

RELATED: Voice Actor Focus: Yoshitsugu Matsuoka and the Overpowered Protagonist

Define "OP"

Son Goku in Dragon Ball

First, we need to understand the scope of what makes a particular character overpowered. A straight definition of the term, "overpowered" gives one the impression that the subject possesses an incredible wellspring of, well, power, that sets them apart from similar subjects. However, the term does come with some negative connotations – sometimes "overpowered" describes characters who are so incredibly adept at whatever it is they do that their native story loses a particular element that brings with it a sense that stakes are high.

The overpowered anime character is many things, but one thing they will always be is the great decider – if anyone has the ability to change the tides of destiny, evade the inevitable and consistently destroy the fabric of what is and isn't considered to be possible in their world of origin. While overpowered has been increasingly used in the context of characters who simply cannot and will not be caught slipping. These characters have a plan for every problem, a contingency for every failed plan, a friend who knows the manager of the restaurant, and an uncanny ability to avoid genuine loss or death. There are countless examples of overpowered characters; however, they can be classed according to various aspects, such as their ontological precedence (how they became), the scope of their ability or potential, the context; that is, in what aspect of life does their overwhelming ability have relevance, among various other factors.

Born Weak, Live Strong

deku-school-sports-festival-injured

This first category is one that creates particularly gripping stories due to the nature of the journey. A character begins as a novice, working their way towards a level of mastery yet to be seen in their world of origin. These are your inspirational stories; the characters who were made fun of for having a goal or a dream, those who had no business aiming high but did so anyway and beat the odds. The most popular example of this type of overpowered is the Dragon Ball franchise's protagonist; a character who needs no introduction.

Having been born with a power level of 2, Goku's Saiyan heritage and his insatiable appetite for training and combat led him to continuously test and break through his limits, and now he exists as an outlier – a mortal who obtained the power of a god. It's obvious why such stories garner so much attention – they inspire fans to improvise, adapt and overcome.

RELATED: One Piece: The Meaning Behind Opening Wano's Borders, Explained

This kind of overpowered protagonist has its own subsets, such as characters who are initially presented at the very beginning of their journey but retrospectively so. Characters in this specific subset include Tokyo Ghoul protagonist Ken Kaneki, who is seen by many as a codifier for this specific type; My Hero Academia protagonist Izuku "Deku" Midoriya; and, to an extent, Arifureta: Commonplace to World's Strongest protagonist Hajime Nagumo; Iruma from Welcome to Demon School Iruma-kun!; Naofumi Iwatani from Rise of the Shield Hero; as well as the protagonist of the popular manhwa title, Solo Levelling, the S-Ranked Hunter known as Sung Jin-Woo. While the aforementioned characters are overpowered in different visceral ways, it is the fact that they go from nobody to the undisputed world's best at whatever it is they are doing that links them. At the rate he's going, Ao Ashi protagonist Aoi Ashito will find himself in this company as well.

Born the Best

tatsuya and his sister

The next category of overpowered protagonist is the kind that begins their journey at the very end; that is, that they are already the most powerful entity in their native series from their introduction. While many of these characters technically started out weak and became strong at some point in their lives, the most emphasized period in their lives is usually the point after they gained insurmountable power. Characters like Tatsuya Shiba from The Irregular at Magic High School (and by association, Anos Voldigoad from The Misift of Demon King Academy) are often seen by others in the same universe as incompetent, and are often treated with contempt, disrespect and derision; however, these characters stand head and shoulders above everyone else.

Kazuto "Kirito" Kirigaya from the Sword Art Online franchise is perhaps one of the most infamous overpowered protagonists in this specific category and is perhaps the perfect case study regarding what makes this trope particularly frustrating for anime fans. These characters can often do anything and regardless of the opposition or adversity, they always find a way to get through it. They become adept at anything very quickly, are masters of turning people into allies, and often garner followers who are immensely loyal.

Did You Mean "Underdeveloped"?

Kirito of Sword Art Online

What the overpowered protagonist trope often creates is characters that are uninspired, lacking in creativity and lacking in risk. A character who can do anything has nothing to lose, and also has nothing to gain. Their journey is complete as it begins, their plans made as problems arise, and their victory is not just certain, but certain in ways that can sometimes be unsatisfying, boring and again, uninspired. The truth is that there are ways for the overpowered to still have some work to do with regard to becoming truly without peer, and this kind of direction is how Goku's journey in Dragon Ball is so influential, yet also guilty of some of the worst applications of the trope.

In some ways, the stagnation of the character can be a thematic choice and even be important to the narrative in ways that create interesting dynamics. One Punch Man is heavily celebrated for its subversion of popular expectations in shonen media, particularly the overpowered protagonist trope. As a parody, One Punch Man is genius, but it is also still fully within the bounds of what a battle shonen can be like, and Saitama's dual existence as a nobody but also the strongest somebody is what makes One Punch Man so good. Tagging Goku as underdeveloped is particularly dubious because while he continues to ascend to new heights, he consistently meets limitation; however, his overpoweredness as a journey exists somewhere nebulous: he is underdeveloped yet fully realized, without limit, yet constantly reaching new ceilings. What makes his particular version of overpowered fall into the category that makes fans turn up their noses is the fact that any and all conflict end with Goku's specific victory, even if other characters could feasibly do certain things similarly.

Critical Mass?

Haruhi Suzumiya (The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya)

All that considered, the majority of overpowered characters from anime of the past have not been mentioned, they are still relevant. Fist of the North Star protagonist Kenshiro is one of the most recognized, most influential overpowered characters, and yet Fist of the North Star continues to go down in history as one of the medium's greatest exports. Rurouni Kenshin protagonist Kenshin Himura lived through post-Warring States Japan with a reversed blade and was still the most fearsome swordsman, even more so than a man who killed so many people that the residual fats could ignite the tip of his blade.

Perhaps a character's overpoweredness isn't the problem, but rather how characters' abilities end up in the realm of unconvincing Ex Machinae, and are used as surrogate personalities. Each of the best overpowered characters are linked by the fact that their overwhelming might is but one aspect of their character, and because of this, overpowered protagonists may never really have a limit or be overdone. It may just be a matter of intent and execution.

MORE: The Best Anime With Overpowered Main Characters